But we didn’t realize that when the manufacturer’s instructions say the machines must be installed on a solidly built floor, they meant a SOLID CONCRETE floor. Our floors are wood framed, 2×10’s 16 inches on center, with a short span. The house is well built, but that’s not good enough. The front-loading washing machine shakes and vibrates the whole house when spinning at medium speed, heaven help us if we go up to extra high speed. I think it would set off earthquake alarms!

We have now done our homework, a little bit late, and find that these bad vibrations are experienced by owners of all brands of front-loading horizontal axis machines. Apparently the manufacturers have not yet learned how to control the dynamics of a horizontally spinning wash tub with an unbalanced load, even though the design has been used for years in commercial laundries and laundromats. A friend of ours who used to own a number of laundromats said, “We always had to bolt our front-loading machines to the floor.” Our understanding now is: all front-loading washers will shake and vibrate; they must be level with all four feet bearing equally on the floor; the floor must be absolutely solid like concrete.

So we have two choices – rebuild the house, or bite the bullet and trade-in these almost-new LG front-loaders for a pair of top-loading Maytags, old technology like the ones that served us well for 25 years. Even that may soon become a problem. We have heard that the USEPA has enacted energy standards that will cause manufacturers to stop producing top-loading clothes washers in the next couple of years.

Our recommendation: if your laundry area has a wooden floor, wait for the front-loading horizontal axis technology to improve. Instead, buy a good quality top-loading clothes washer and dryer. Buy the long-term service agreement, so you have options when parts become unavailable. But by all means, buy the top-loading machine NOW.

If you’re looking at the combo machine in order to save on having to bye a separate washer and dryer, I’d caution you about that. It’s definitely more convenient, but take a close look at the running times for the wash and dryer cycle. While it’s able to do both jobs, it doesn’t do it as well.

I remember, for example, that the drying time for the dryer was way, way longer in the combo unit than the standalone unit. Our dryer takes about 55 minutes to dry one of our typical loads (two adults). The brochure said that the combo unit would take at least another 20 minutes or so.

There’s energy costs there, obviously.

Hope that helps.

FatMixx � First big appliance purchase These consumers write an entire report on their adventure to buy a washer and dryer. They eventually consulted with ePinion and Consumer Reports, but they did a lot of their own investigation, too. Here…

Aaaaaah!!! Way to spring that one on us, guys!

Depending on how much vent runs through the wall… cleaning can be easy… might take a little while depending on whether or not it’s curved.

Congrats! on the new purchase.

I am buying a new refrigerator with my tax refund this weekend. A 26.5 cubic Foot side by side with filtered water and crushed/cubed ice. I have already decided (because I can afford it with my tax refund) to forego connecting the refrigerator to the water source myself. This time, the plummer can do it.

As my wife and I usually say… February is tax refund/new appliance month.

BTW, if you run into problems with the venting…call my brother. Number is on the NERFL list. He owns his own home renovations business and can give tips and pointers over the phone… had him on the phone ten times when I gutted and rebuilt my downstairs bathroom.

Congratulations, again!! and good luck with the extra work.

I’ll give them a call if it looks too difficult.

Also, if you’re messing with dryer venting, give Dr Dryer Vent a call: 1.866.4DR.VENT. They’re the only company in CT that specializes in cleaning vents thoroughly (other companies do it, but it’s a half-assed job). These guys attach a big-ass blower to one end, turn it on, and then break up debris in the vent with a long wire attached to a drill. The wire breaks up birds’ nests, lint buildup, etc, and the blower shoots it out the side of the house. Gets rids of a big ass fire hazard; I was stunned how much flammable crap came shooting out the side of my vent.

Also, they can install aluminum (?) dryer venting for about $100… they did for me.

We went the opposite way with our washer/dryer. We basically bought the not-quite bottom of the line Sears stuff because we probably won’t live in this house more than 5 years and we’ll just leave them for the new owners. We did get a gas dryer though which I am really happy with, it’s much more efficient.

And Kirsten, Myles Pat, and Rebecca — I recall our New Year’s Eve conversation of getting excited about appliances. Man, Sujal was almost wetting himself, he was so excited about buying new appliances. Me, i was okay with ” ‘Ol Noisy” in the basement.